Of Knights And Scoundrels
by Cyn V
Summary: Allen Schezar has just received the orders that would change his life forever. He must now come to terms with the rowdy residents of Fort Castelo, while keeping an eye out for far greater trouble. [no slash tyvm]
1. Index

**Title:** Of Knights And Scoundrels

**Author:** Cyn  
**Rating:** PG/K  
**Genre:** Action/Adventure  
**Summary:** After his affair with princess Marlene came out into the open, Allen Schezar received the orders that would change his life forever. He must now come to terms with the rowdy residents of Fort Castelo, while keeping an eye out for far greater problems. Allen/Gaddes friendship fic - meaning, no slash tyvm. ;)  
**Feedback:** Yes, please! Especially the constructive kind. For anything at all, be it 2005 or 2050, I am gladly at your disposal.  
**Notes:** I will not be held responsible for the bad chapter titles.  
**Disclaimer:** I just own the plot... I think. 

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**Chapter Index**

**Chapter 01:**_ A doored kiss_ (28/11/2005)**  
Chapter 02: **_Arranging... arrangements _(29/11/2005)  
**Chapter 03: **_Scamper, scamper_ (30/11/2005)**  
Chapter 04: **_Curtiwald Zänninger _(30/11/2005)  
**Chapter 05:**_ Aggressive negotiations_ (12/04/2006)  
**Chapter 06:** _A change of plans_ (18/11/2007)  
**Chapter 07:**_ Not a stuffed flower_ (23/11/2007)  
**Chapter 08:** _The best of plans_ (23/02/2008)  
Chapter 09  
Chapter 10  
Chapter 11  
Chapter 12  
Chapter 13  
Chapter 14  
Chapter 15  
Chapter 16  
Chapter 17  
Chapter 18  
Chapter 19  
Chapter 20


	2. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1: A doored kiss... **

Fort Castelo.

Try as he might, the bold and very underlined words on the letter carrying his new official orders had been printed with conviction and demanded not to be ignored. As it was, a fierce battle of wills was going on between the pristine piece of paper and the fire spitting Knight Caeli. There were casualties on both sides, but it was not altogether clear which one of them was leading the dispute so far.

Allen Schezar had read the letter so many times over that the edges were beginning to fray; his anxious hands had rubbed and crumpled every grain of the cursed sheet, tracing every curve of the neat calligraphy with sincere loathing. Funny how his superiors had gone to the trouble of finding a skilled enough scribe to put the orders on paper, considering all the haste involved in issuing them. Allen had taken that fact as nicely as a slap in the face.

Finally deciding he had stood in the middle of his room for long enough, he discarded the letter on top of his bureau, swearing that if he ever saw a similar communiqué in his life, it would be the last the Asturian army ever had the opportunity to send him. He needed to start putting his travel pack together, so he moved to the wardrobe, sorting through his clothing at the same time as he did it to his agitated thoughts.

The... 'incident', as everyone else saw fit to call it, that had been the cause of his dismissal, for a dismissal was exactly what was imprinted on that letter, was still fresh on his memory. For almost a year now, he had maintained a secret relationship with the eldest Princess and heiress to the throne of Asturia, Marlene. The two of them had shared a romance worthy of any self-respecting mushy novel: passionate, but doomed to clandestinity.

Unfortunately, the Knight-Princess coupling only worked as far as duty was concerned. Other than that, it was heavily frowned upon by the Court. But even the aristocrats' likeliness to gain wrinkles in the forehead was the least of Marlene's and his troubles. The Schezar family was enshrouded in controversy to begin with, courtesy of Allen's father Leon, who had abandoned his wife and two children after thoroughly draining the house's finances. But as much as it pleased Allen to have one more thing to blame on his father, the worst and in fact the determining deathblow to the love affair had been the fact that the Princess had been given away for engagement to the Duke of Freid, compliments of her own father.

There was no way for her to run away from the commitment, so Allen had retreated to friendship with the Princess, not wanting to cause her any more grief than absolutely necessary, nor lose her entirely. On the day of the 'incident', the two of them had been sharing a perfectly innocent cup of tea on Marlene's quarters, when not so innocent thoughts emerged. Alarm and outright fear had taken hold of Allen's mind so quickly after that, that all he could remember was the sound of the door snapping open and the King turning a very crimson shade.

He directed another seething glare at the letter that lay mocking him in its austere simplicity and impersonal script, challenging it to somehow rewrite itself into something worse. Those orders were his punishment and the King's way of ensuring that nothing of the sort ever happened again, be it with Allen or any other man that happened to take a liking for one of his daughters. He picked up a handful of white, perfectly pressed and folded shirts and tossed them over his shoulder into the travel bag laying open upon the bed.

Fort Castelo indeed.

Well, of one thing he could at least be certain: he was not being dismissed lightly. He was sure someone had taken great lengths to ensure that he was sent as far away as physically possible from Palas, capital of Asturia, his current place of residence and home to the hottest scandal of the decade. The name of the fort he was being assigned to had struck no immediate chords in his memory when he had read it, although he was sure he had to have come upon it at least once or twice during his studies to become a knight.

It had taken him a good twenty minutes examining maps in his study before he was able to locate it, and during that time, he had come to the swift realisation that not only did the fort occupy no place of significant importance whatsoever in Asturia's defences, but it was also a materialization of several ill attributes combined into one. It was unknown, desolate, ungodly remote and – his personal favourite – situated on the fringes of the kingdom near the Fanelian border.

Someone must have been very hopeful that he came to stumble across a dragon while taking a future stroll in the woods, no doubt. The worst of all was that he knew exactly who that someone was and why he would desire such a lowly fate to befall on Allen Schezar: King Aston himself. With a dry laugh, the knight pondered how that dramatically cut his chances of ever having an exemplary career. Being assigned to a fort in the middle of nowhere would have normally angered Allen, but after losing Marlene, he was in such a state of detachment from reality, that he truly could not care less about that detail.

He placed the last of his trousers on the open bag with more care than that he had given to its peers beneath, now that his frustration and anger had somewhat abated. He ran a mental check through the list of supplies he would need to take with him and, deeming himself satisfied, shut the case with a heavy sigh. He had everything he would need from here; the only thing left to do was head to the Army's Headquarters to pick up all the files on the people he would be working with from now on and embark on his transport.

Yes, he was ready to go. Allen Schezar, Knight Caeli, fallen in disgrace and sentenced to serve for the rest of his days in a useless position away from everything and everyone he had come to care about, for the convenience of others.

The front door of the Schezar manor closed soundly behind him, sealing his destiny, and he approached the awaiting coach, burdened with an emotion much less invigorating than enthusiasm.

_**--------------------------------------------------**_

A trade freighter.

Allen found it somewhat amusing that he had not been granted official military transport for the half-day journey to Fort Castelo. Some commander had found the merchant ship in preparation for imminent take off to Fanelia and 'hitched' a ride for the knight. It was like receiving an ultimate, albeit insignificantly small, blow to his pride.

Not that he was uncomfortable aboard. The ship was certainly spacious, accommodating him, his bags and his ten meter high, five meter wide guymelef without problem. He just wished he could have made something of a marking departure, complete with theatricals, and subsequent impressive entrance to his new post.

Presently, he sat on a bed in the individual cabin that had been arranged for him, with an array of diverse reports sprayed in a wide circle in front of him. He had eight hours to learn what he needed to know about the position he would be taking, and his complete ignorance on what exactly was it that soldiers did in a place as isolate as Fort Castelo was not helping. He was not even sure which file to pick up first, though eventually he made up his mind and braved the task of assessing what was in store for him in the near future.

Fort Castelo had not been built recently, but neither was it an old outpost. It had been erected little over a century past, for very specific reasons. Firstly, because at the time the Alliance between Fanelia and Asturia had not yet been forged and the King was wary of leaving the borders next to the warrior neighbour completely unguarded. That purpose had all but vanished and instead Fort Castelo became a sort of last checkpoint for Asturian vessels before entering Fanelia, and, of course, Fanelian ones entering the country. Customs. Certainly not the kind of job that would require or even be as much as worthy of a Knight Caeli's attention. Much less life-long supervision.

In fact, as he skimmed through the records of the stationed soldiers that would serve under him, it quickly became apparent that it was hardly worth anyone's attention. If ever there was a scale to qualify the competence of soldiers and their general capability, Fort Castelo was home to those who scored below zero. Which meant it was sort of the army's trash bin.

Allen almost felt hurt at that thought, sarcastically speaking. He had nursed the idea that his superiors had had difficulty in finding a convenient place – a bad enough place – to send their disgraced knight and effectively be rid of him. Unbridled came the image of a general flipping through Allen's own records with a half glazed stare, and then dismissing them with a chuckle and a 'send him to Castelo', seconds after receiving them. Somehow, not having the satisfaction of knowing that the task of finding the wayward knight a suitable exile arrangement had at least been irksome, disheartened him and made everything seem a little worse than before.

Not for the tenth time that day, Allen Schezar sighed.

He was just memorizing some facts about these soldiers awaiting him, when a knock on the door signalled that Fort Castelo had come into view and the Captain had invited Allen to join him at the ship's bridge. The knight shuffled all the papers together, admitting to himself that it was not really that important to be able to distinguish between he who had made it a business out of smuggling goods during missions and the one who had engaged into a fight with his commander after deciding the man was not good enough commanding material for him and refusing to obey any and everything that came out of his mouth. In the end, Allen concluded, he would have to be cautious around everyone he came to meet, at least at first, and put his faith in good old military discipline. If he followed that, how difficult could it be?

The knight made his way through the old, unimpressive corridors following the man who had come to get him, finally entering the bridge of the ship soon afterwards, as the merchant Captain was giving his last minute instructions for the landing. Allen silently approached the view screen and got his first view of what would be his new home for a very long time. Fort Castelo. He had to make a conscious effort not to gawk too loudly.

It could be described, with startling accuracy, as the backyard of nowhere, no better than a junk deposit. By the sun and two moons, it was even worse than Allen's worst assumptions.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the Captain nearing and turning his face to hide an amused chuckle. Apparently the gawking had come through his knightly mask. No wonder there. Indignation flared inside of him at the disrespectful treatment, nonetheless, and he faced the man. He could personally not care whether he was in Palas or Castelo right now, but he did care about the way he was treated. He was a knight and deserved respect, with perhaps an undertone of admiration, he conceded. He addressed him in clipped tones, intending to show both his dislike and his superiority through a flawless display of palatine manners.

"Is something the matter, Captain?"

"Oh, nothing at all, sir Allen," he replied, sobering up while bending forward in some mockery of a bow. There was something very unsettling about the man, but Allen could not be sure if it was originated from the act that was being directed at him or whether the captain was like this with everyone.

Allen had not given any thought to speaking with any of the personnel aboard before, preferring to lock himself in his cabin to sulk in peace for the duration of the trip. Now, though, he was regretting it. If only he had put two and two together earlier on, he might have done something of his eight hours and gathered information that would be useful. After all, these merchants were frequent visitors to Fanelia, and therefore, the outpost. It would have been interesting to hear a more personal insight into the people awaiting him on the ground.

"I was wondering, Captain. I imagine you pass through Fort Castelo rather frequently in your travels, is it not so?" The man emphatically acquiesced Allen, who did what he could in dismissing the image that was passing through: that of a man wizened by experience and tired of having to remind those younger than him of that very fact. He continued, still in the slightly harsh tone of the first acknowledgement, "Could you tell me what it is like at the Fort?"

"Ah, you don't have to worry about nothing, sir Allen", he said in full blown condescension. "Trouble doesn't come to these parts. No conflicts, no wars... there simply isn't anyone around for it to happen", he laughed and Allen tried to join in on the mirth. A tight-lipped stretch of muscles was the result. He really could not see the fun in the situation, especially not with that distrust of the man nagging him at the back of his head.

"The officer in charge, a sergeant Gaddes, I think. Do you happen to know him, Captain?"

"Aye, I know the bugger. Helped me out of some sticky situations before. He's a good man", he finished with the rather relaxed statement, which put Allen at such ease, he almost breathed in relief. He knew he would need a good second in command in order to settle nicely into place at the fort. Knowing this opinion did not eradicate all of his doubts about the post he would be taking, but it did give him hope that his new leadership would be well accepted. Who knew what conflicts could arise among their ranks if it was not so.

"Launching anchors!" The aide's bellow cut through the bridge and untangled his thoughts.

"You might want to get your things together, sir Allen. Wait by your guymelef while we land, so we can be quick to unload your cargo. We'll get you out in that Fort in no time." Allen nodded his thanks and went on his way. The sooner he was out, the sooner he would know what his superiors had planned for him.

As announced, the ship descended to a smooth landing and, within minutes' time, the clang of anchors was resounding in the hangar and the hatch had opened. Some merchants began operating the machinery to unload the knight's large guymelef, while Allen descended the ramp, in easy quick steps, to find himself fully engulfed in a forestal environment. The Captain joined him soon after.

The sound of the cooling engines and steam releases followed him as he entered the dense woods surrounding the landing site. The rustling of the leaves mingled with the squeaks and spasms of technology behind him and muffled his footsteps, suddenly reducing him to the humble individual that he was. Very little sun made it past the canopy above in this late hour, but the air was far from cool, like it would have been in Palas. There, the sea breeze would have been sweeping the skies; here, the atmosphere was loaded, saturated by moist and heat accumulated during the day.

"Very different from the city, isn't it?" The Captain said, closely studying the knight's features. Allen responded with a shake of the head. Strangely enough, this was the first time in a long time, long before receiving that fateful letter and even Marlene, that he had felt something akin to true peace.

He turned slowly towards the man, casting an inconsequential gaze at the ship that had brought him and, beyond it, at the high walls that fortified Castelo. The gates had opened and a small group of soldiers and equipment was making their way over. The serenity of the moment caused Allen to make a quick resolution, there and then; he needed to speak.

"You know, there was a time in my youth when I lived in woods not very unlike these. I used to love it then: the freedom, having nothing standing in my way, and living especially for the thrill of constantly testing one's limits. Then the most extraordinary thing happened: I was given a purpose."

The Captain had taken on an awkward look, like he was not exactly certain of what he had done to land himself on the receiving end of such confidences. He did not know what the knight wanted of him, what kind of answer he was expecting, and thus, he said nothing and let the pause soar between the two.

Allen, though, could not care less for any reaction he might elicit from the other. He chose to ignore the man altogether and stared at some far away point at the edge of the world. It was likely he would never see this man again, and that was what removed all the restraints he had placed upon himself. This had been troubling him throughout the day, he knew, but only now did he realise how much he really needed to get it out of his system. He was not elaborating on his speech too much, there were things that no one but him needed to know, but even this small partial admission was an important milestone for him, he could tell.

"I did not ask for it, I didn't even realise how much I needed it. It just came to me after a lucky encounter. It was around that time that I moved back to the city, to the abandoned building that had once been my home. Funnily enough," he laughed ironically, "I remember how much that sudden change disturbed me. Now I would do anything to go back to that. Retreating to the middle of nowhere again is just too strange. I can only hope I can cope fairly with the new turn of events."

A long silence ensued, occasionally pierced by some or other shouted instruction from the traders unloading cargo for the Fort. Allen had nothing more to say, feeling he had gone on enough, now that stress slowly made its way back to his circulation. The Captain also was unsure of how to make a reply to the kind of talk he had been privy. Steadily, the group from Castelo approached.

"Yes, it is very different from the city", the knight finally supplied. "We should go back to your fellows now. The Fort's escort is here."


	3. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2: Arranging... arrangements **

Allen had known from the start that the transition in command of Fort Castelo would not be simple, nor easily accepted. He had read while on the ship that the people garrisoned on the Fort had been there for some time now, enough time for their own organizational structure to considerably solidify. Old loyalties and friendships had grown deep roots among the men; it was a fact that had become apparent to Allen the moment he had stepped foot on the Fort.

There was a relaxed ambient around and inside the complex, but the obvious lack of the unyielding discipline that Allen was accustomed to find at Palas, in no way hindered the functioning of the Fort. The knight had to concede that there was not much depending on the soldiers' effectiveness or accomplishments, but the feeling was there all the same.

Where Palas had been like a fine pocket-watch lubricated with rare oils, glinting a sharp untouched gold in the sun, Fort Castelo was like the dust clogged rods uniting two adjacent wheels of a train. The things would turn in apparent disjointed, dysfunctional, imperfect circles, and yet, they never failed to keep up.

Matters were carried out smoothly and the men seemed to enjoy a great amount of freedom to handle their jobs as they thought best, instead of having to confer with their superior for every decision that came their way. Allen had known from his earlier readings that these soldiers had an history when it came to following blindly and strictly, and he had made sure to reaffirm that information in his mind for many further uses.

He had, however, expected that the measure of respect that his status as a Knight Caeli was bound to attract was enough to counter-balance all the other aspects he had going against him. Surely these men would trust Allen's judgement immediately, inspired by the greatness that it took for one to ascend to the rank he had; surely they would realise what good and expert hands they were being placed in. Unfortunately for Allen Schezar, his life was at a point in which it had made a bet to see how many bad things it could throw his way before something good inevitably happened.

One of the men had excused himself once inside the building, taking with him Allen's belongings to deposit in the room that had been assigned to him, while the knight was led immediately to the Sergeant's presence. Allen had been grateful; he too preferred to get these things out of the way and meet his second in command as soon as possible.

He had been brought to a modest office, furnished only with a desk, chairs, table and fireplace. It was obviously not used very often, as it had been bereft of any personal touches from the part of the Sergeant who it belonged to. The room was gifted with a window with a view over great part of the Fort, and that had been where the man was standing, peering out, when Allen had entered.

He had immediately changed stances to one of attention as he welcomed the knight. Sergeant Gaddes was a tall, large man, with eyes keen and small and the beginnings of a beard spiking his jaw line. He wore a personally customized green uniform, indicative of his rank, complete with the fashionable puffy sleeves every Asturian soldier had come to despise. After some pleasant chat and quick offers later, Allen had asked to be excused to get a quick shower and some rest before it was time for dinner, Gaddes had assured him that he would help the knight in any way he could to make him feel 'at home', and that was it. Allen was being once again led through the halls to his new quarters.

Allen had to admit that after that encounter he had been left with mixed feelings about what was to come at dinner that night. The Captain had been right, sergeant Gaddes had seemed to be a good man. Pleasant, reliable, steadfast, all good qualities he expected to find in a man on a commanding position. If his ten-minute-based impressions were correct, he would have no trouble whatsoever, with such a capable man as his second. But that was just the trouble spot, he was basing himself on feelings he had picked up in his whole of ten minute long chat with Gaddes.

He hoped he was right, but on the other hand, his guts were still screaming at him not to forget his previous expectations. The Sergeant was just one man and although he had made his insertion at Castelo's tight community seem simple and smooth, how would everyone else receive him? Something was telling him to brace himself, that his life was still determined in sending him as many challenges as it could possibly fit into the shortest possible time-frame.

Short time-frame. Now that he thought about it, taking into consideration all the little gestures and mannerisms of the Sergeant, he wondered if the man had been a little too nervous when they spoke. He had almost seemed only too glad to comply when Allen had asked to take his leave, like he had some other agenda on hold.

Ridiculous, he told himself. Gaddes had just been anxious to see who he had ended up with as a superior, much like he himself had been about his subordinates. And still was. But no, no greater conspiracy was going on behind his back, it had been completely natural and acceptable behaviour for the man.

All that remained now was being formally introduced - shown off - at dinner. Gaddes had promised to introduce him to as many as he could, show him around to familiarize with the faces he would be seeing every day. And pick him up at his room when the time came for dinner. The man was late. So much for being reliable.

The sun was setting. What the heck, he thought. He might as well get rid of the 'young boy complex' and explore the fort. Even if he did come upon someone it was not as if he was trespassing or doing something wrong: he was the commander! Pausing in front of the mirror for a last minute check on his hair and last tug on the jacket, he exited the bedroom and set out to not getting himself too lost.

He had called the place a junk deposit when he had seen it for the first time, aboard the merchant ship. Now, he was feeling inclined to rephrase it, he decided as he glanced through a window. It was a junk deposit, on the outside.

Spare guymelef parts littered the ground, alongside weapons of artillery and forgotten craters. What should have been a clear yard, was more resemblant of a mechanic's open-air warehouse. The inside of the main building of the Fort, however, was, thankfully, rather clean, orderly and... welcoming.

It was made almost entirely out of wood, which, Allen remarked, was a not so brilliant strategical decision. The so called fortress would come down in an instant and rendered useless, in the face of a fire. Even the walls fortifying it were mere palisades. They might have been enough around the time when they were built, but no longer on these modern times where guymelefs were fundamental in any war.

Apart from such musings, Allen managed to find some important sites in his wandering. He found the hangar where Scherazade was already sitting like a queen, the holding cells not far from it, and even an aisle of what he thought were quarters for the soldiers. He had not found anyone yet, but attributed it to the fact that they had probably left to stuff their stomachs without considering how stagnant and unprotected the building was in their absence. When he was retracing his steps and passing outside the door to the hangar, though, a hushed conversation quickly put that quiet to an end.

"...just has to call for them to send more", Allen made out from the mumbling as he pressed an ear to the door and tried to stay out of sight from these soldiers with no appetite.

"Yeah, but what if we're caught? You know the...", another one was saying when he was interrupted by a third.

"Relax, buddy, you'll see... we get the parts, call for more, and no one will notice they were even gone. In the meanwhile, we'll sell the old ones to Cutty and make a fortune for ourselves!" There was something about this one's sly tone that definitely made Allen suspicious.

"Then why don't we just take the new ones that will arrive after?" The second asked.

"Because, you dolt, those parts will be new and marked! If we ever have any problems, we can just say we got them from the junk and repaired them", the first broke in. If the third's slyness was unsettling, the this one was plain unnerving from how brusque he sounded.

"Ohhh... And why won't the guy ever find out about this stuff again?" The second inputted. Allen was coming to the conclusion that he was not the brightest man around, whatever it was that the three were discussing.

"We've told you before!"

"Because, my friend... why would the stupid knight ever need to use the 'melef when he's out here!" Scherazade!

These three were planning to dismantle Scherazade behind Allen's back! He was just preparing to stomp towards the door and give the men a lesson about not touching other people's, his, guymelefs, when a hand wrapped around his arm and jerked him back.

"Hey, sir Allen." Gaddes. "I'm glad to have found you, I've been looking everywhere for you", he said with half a smile.

"Sergeant, I am glad to have found you too. There are three men in the hangar planning to..." Allen explained, hoping to rally the man's help, but was cut off as the other started pulling him in the direction where he had come from.

"Whatever it was you heard, I'm sure it's nothing", he dismissed. "Come on, let's get you to the cantina so I can start getting you introduced to everyone around here."

Allen had a very good idea about which three people he would like to meet, but chose to not pursue the subject. He was still worried about what could happen to Scherazade, but he did not want to start accusing people he did not know of theft on his first day. He would take up the Sergeant on his word that there was nothing serious going on. Had he not decided no more than an hour ago that the man was reliable? Oh, wait, he was not. Still, he let himself be dragged down the hall, figuring that, judging from what he had overheard, the worst that could happen in any case was Scherazade, his pride and joy, ending up with a set of brand new parts.

They passed in front of Allen's door, and he learned that in all his blessed ignorance of the place, he had gone in the exact opposite direction of the dining room. Now that he was correctly on track and guided by Gaddes' expertise, it took no more than a couple of well timed turns to reach the doors-almost-gates to the Great Hall.

The Sergeant did not hesitate in rushing him inside, barely giving the knight enough time to register an ominous feeling as he crossed the threshold. Allen was hit head-on by a wave of noise and heat and in the second of distraction it created, the Sergeant grabbed him by the arm again and pushed him to the main table at the front of the room.

Like the rest of the Fort, the walls of this room were panelled in wood and scarcely decorated with the occasional rug or flag, which gave it a warm touch. Contributing to that warmth, were the many torches and fireplaces scattered throughout, and of course, the hundred and so soldiers all breathing, drinking, talking, eating, singing... in two words, slacking off. By the look of it, dinner was already well beyond half-way, and unless Allen's eyes failed him, some of the men had done a good job in getting fairly drunk during that period. The ambient was nothing if not relaxed, but as Allen took the seat that Gaddes was offering him at the center of his table, overlooking all others, he was incredibly tense. He felt every bit the outsider that he was.

It was not that the scene was a completely unfamiliar one for Allen. He had eaten in plenty of cafeterias in Palas and was well used to them, but it had been a while since the last time he had had to eat in one. His knighting had provided him with a set of luxuries that, he had not realised until recently, had spoiled him. But that was not the end of it.

He was sitting in a very central position, which left him feeling vulnerable, given that he was no better than a stranger to these men. He saw every person in the room, and every person saw him. And these people still had the gift of making him feel uncomfortable and unsure of how to act. In the short walk from the doors to the tables, Gaddes had greeted several people along the way, and not one of them had reacted with what Allen would call 'proper treatment to a superior officer'. Not one bow, not even a salute, most of them gave the Sergeant a good slap in the back which the knight was sure would have left him doubled over on the ground had it been him. Oh, yes, he would need some adapting.

The Sergeant first proceeded to introducing Allen to everyone on the table. There were quite a few of them, and the knight could not claim he had a good memory when it came to names. He was left with a vague impression that there were people named Teo, Ort and Kio nearby. Basic questions were exchanged, and then, as Allen was leaning forward and just about to reach for one of the dishes, Gaddes rose from his seat, mug of ale in hand and vocal strings at top volume.

"Oy, you bums!" He called out for everyone to hear. Allen was not sure if his mouth was really hanging open or if it was simply what his brain was telling him he should do in his shock. The whole room had become instantly silent, many of them looking his way. "Like I told you all yesterday, we will be having a new commander here at Fort Castelo. From now on, we will all be serving under sir Allen Schezar, who has arrived from Palas today", he motioned for the knight to stand up and speak for himself, with a slight shrug that said he was not used to making speeches. Allen could have said the same thing, were his mind not so blank. His legs, though, moved of their own accord and he slowly rose to meet the gazes that were now fixed on him.

"Huh... hello, everyone. How are you doing?" He began lamely, and would have cringed if the first impression he was giving these people would not have been so irreparably damaged by that. But what was said, was said, and he kept braving on the crowd. "Like the Sergeant said, I am Knight Caeli Allen Schezar and have been sent from the capital. I have not had much time to get familiarized to the manner in which things are led here, but I am counting on sergeant Gaddes to help me with that, so you can expect that there will not be any significant changes there."

Allen paused to think of something else he could have to say to these men, but his mind was still racing after itself in dizzying circles and made no promise to stop any time soon. Whispers from the soldiers began to fill in the silence.

"Since there are so few of us, and the Fort is so small, I hope to get to know more about each of you soon." That sounded wrong, Allen chastised himself. Then, in the hopes of somehow amending it, he added "From what I have seen, I am sure we will be able to maintain this friendly atmosphere", he finished with a smile that even he had to admit was painstakingly false. He dropped in his seat hoping that being level with the other occupants of the table would somehow make him invisible. It did not.

Gaddes and the others - Kio, Ort, etc - were keeping neutral faces, nodding at him in what was definitely not approval - but not disapproval either - for the speech. They were far from being enthusiastic, but even neutral was good compared to what was happening in the tables below. Now that he was more sheltered among his table companions, Allen was finding it took a lot of self-control not to cringe, bite his lip or slap his forehead proclaiming how stupid he had been. For his audience was a mesh of the reactions that gave nightmares to every speaker around the world.

Disbelieving, sarcastic stares, while commenting with their neighbours in not so hushed tones, words lost in the sea of others doing the same. Icy glares, clearly saying how much they wished that the knight had never set foot on the complex, or perhaps that he had simply not said a word. Laughs, hidden glances, people exiting and leaving the door wide open for others to follow.

Gaddes rose again, trying to get the men into taking on the role of an at least convincing eager audience. It was obvious that he realised how inappropriate their behaviour was before the knight, but his reign on the mob was too loose to have any effect now that their steam was full on. He turned to the knight in defeat.

"Don't worry, sir Allen. They can get a bit out of order like this at times, but they won't give you any problems. I know them well enough to guarantee you that." Allen was nodding his thanks when a flash of metal from the door caught his eye and left him baffled all over again.

A large soldier dressed with pieces of armour and two lankier ones were carrying what looked suspiciously like a valve for a guymelef articulation. Allen stared, and decided that he could expect nothing good to come from this crew. As the shouts from the hall filled his ears and Gaddes gave up trying to reassure him, the knight fervently desired that he was back at Palas comfortably asleep in the Schezar estate.


	4. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3: Scamper, scamper **

The sun rose the next morning, confirming in a very sadistic way that no matter what the petty mortal beings beneath it had chosen to do with their lives, they had better get up and deal with it.

So it was that Allen woke with mixed feelings. On the one hand, he was very much dreading what it would be like to face the men who had laughed in his face because of his inadequacy the previous night, while at the same time also clinging to a budding sense of hope that close interaction with them would show that he was not the idiot they took him for. On the other hand, a much more pleasant hand, he was perfecting a plan to catch the three soldiers who had dared touch Scherazade. He had yet to make up his mind, but was inclined to give priority to pursuing the latter.

He made his way to the wardrobe, silently thankful that he did not have to share quarters in the outer barracks like the vast majority of the garrisoned soldiers, and gloriously threw the doors open. It was empty. A small search through his apartment revealed that his pack was nowhere near. Brilliant. Now he would also have to track down the soldier who had so willingly taken charge over his belongings. He quickly donned his blue uniform, praying to all gods that it was not too rumpled. He did not need to further look like a fool; what he needed was to carry himself with all the knightly dignity he could muster. But he left these matters pending, for right now he had better - and far more alluring - things to do.

He had the gearings of a small revenge to put on the move.

Now that he minimally knew where he was going, he picked up breakfast from the cantina, and then made a beeline for the hangar. All the while, he was replaying snippets of the conversation he had overheard. 'Why would the stupid knight ever need to use the 'melef when he's out here?' Why indeed. Except perhaps to do some exercise in the morning. If the three thought that he was going to make it easy on them to mangle his precious Scherazade they were in for a surprise.

He was hoping to find them on duty this morning, and confront them, at first, with a display of most innocent ignorance. Even if it was not their shift, he would still come out of this with their names and an opportunity to assign them punishment for their actions. And then, he would just have to let the wings of his imagination carry him, to come up with the most dreadful, boring, tiring, and all out worst task for the three to do. He seriously felt like patting himself on the back for his brilliancy.

Walking nonchalantly while consciously disregarding the workers that were giving him strange looks, Allen approached the throne where Scherazade rested. He studied the joints corresponding to what would have been the elbows and knees of a human, but found nothing to indicate that they had been tampered.

He was actually hoping for one or more of the three thieves, in some access of nervousness or plain remorse, to come to him and confess that it was possible that the guymelef was not one hundred percent operational. He would have held on to him like a mad dog after a bone if that had been the case, and given him a good piece of his mind. Seeing as no one was about to give him any advice, or express themselves verbally at all, for that matter, he just climbed the ladder to the cockpit.

During the whole time, his back had been turned on the workers assembled at the hangar, so Allen failed to see the nervous glances being exchanged and the one man who had fled the room, having been sent out to get help.

Allen did not have to wait long for the first signs of "sabotage" to manifest themselves, in fact, he did not have to wait at all. Just as he was powering up the machine, he came upon the most interesting of facts. The guymelef was failing to power up, because... there was no power supply.

"They took the energist!" He hissed to himself, not wanting to believe it. Drag-energists were rosy spherical crystals that could only be obtained from the entrails of a dragon. They were immensely powerful and durable sources of energy, and for those two reasons, they were also very difficult to find and very expensive. They were about the size of a clenched fist, which, Allen realised, was why he had not seen it being carried when the three men had passed in the corridor outside the main hall door last night.

He banged his hands on the controls, now more frustrated than ever, and jumped onto the ladder, intending to demand explanations from the workers that were watching him from the ground. Subtlety be damned. He stood imperiously in front of the closest soldier.

"Is it a policy here to remove the energists from the equipment when it is not being used?" He asked, towering over the man and looking icily down. He had nursed the idea that perhaps he had been mistaken about the sabotage, but now that he had certainties he was livid that someone had dared tamper with his Scherazade behind his back.

"Of course not, sir Allen. Energists are always left in their place in case there are emergencies. Is there something I can do for you, sir?" The soldier was wearing a sort of yellowy kerchief wrapped around his head, but he was somehow familiar. He was spindly, short and there was something of a sly quality to him... that was it!

"What is your name, soldier?" He elegantly asked, very aware of who he was talking to now.

"Reeden, sir", the man said proudly. Little did he know that he had just signed his name on Allen's 'kill on sight' list. Every worker present had joined the two to watch, forming a semi circle behind Reeden. The anxiety was palpable on the air, but the soldier and the knight were not paying particular attention to it.

"Well. Reeden. As a matter of fact there is something you can do to help me. You can-"

"What is going on here? Why aren't you scumbags working?" Sergeant Gaddes said with carefree grandeur, totally oblivious to the fact that he had just interrupted Allen when he was about to launch himself on a full-steam rant about impudence and stolen parts with one of the very thieves who had stolen them.

"Nothin', Sarge! Sir Allen here was just having some mechanical trouble, that's all", Reeden replied coolly. The gathering began to disperse, knowing that now that Gaddes was there, there would not be much more to see.

"As a matter of fact, it was more than-" Allen began, but Gaddes cut him off yet again, completely ruining his plans for the soldier in process.

"Then why aren't you fixing it? Get to work!" If the knight had not been so frustrated at the constant interruptions and overridings, he would have noticed the small flash of gratitude that crossed Reeden's features for less than a second before he scampered off to keep a distance between himself and the knight. "There, sir Allen. All in order now."

"Yes, quite. But as I was saying, what was really-"

"Sarge!" This time it was a running brunet that cut off his word. Would Allen ever get a chance to explain that his energist and who knew what else had just been stolen! "Important letter for you, Sarge!"

The brunet had come dashing from the door, tightly gripping a folded paper in his hands. Gaddes took it from him and quickly read through. He was bearing a tired look by the time he reached the end of it.

"Anything important?" Allen inquired, instantly sobbering. The sergeant quickly looked up, as if he had forgotten that the knight was standing right in front of him, and gave him a brief contemplative look.

"No, nothing for you to worry about, sir Allen", he assured. Then, almost as an afterthought, "I left a stack of all the recent reports on your office for you to catch up on our current situation at the Fort... I believe you already know the way there?"

"Err, no I don't. I still haven't had the chance..."

"Teo", the Sergeant called the brunet. "Will you show sir Allen the way to his office please?"

If Allen was aware that his second in command was trying to get rid of him, he did not show it. Instead, he followed the brunet, who had been expecting the Sergeant to do just that, without protest. As soon as the doors closed behind the two, the tension in the air dissipated for a fraction, until Gaddes bellowed menacingly.

"Reeden!"

"I'm sorry, Sarge. How was I supposed to know he would be using the 'melef and..." the lanky soldier immediately threw himself into a ramble of apologies as he made his way over, not noting the way the Sergeant was dismissing him with his hand.

"I don't care about that, Reeden, and you can thank me for saving your hide later. Read this." And he shoved the message in front of the shorter man's face. As his eyes trailed over the paper, they gradually widened in shock.

"Oh shit", he stated.

"Exactly. So, tell me. What's the story this time?" Gaddes asked, rubbing his temples. He was a good friend of Reeden, but sometimes the man just had no sense in him. Well, to be honest, he rarely had sense, but it was only when people put a price on his friend's head that Gaddes was forcefully reminded of that fact.

"Ah, y'know... huh, I'm not sure..." Gaddes cocked an eyebrow for him to be more explicit. "Well, it could be a number of things. You know I'm always doin' small stuff for Cutty. One supply here, ignore a ship there, small stuff. Sometimes I can't always do what he asks, that's all."

"«Small stuff», as you put it, is not enough reason for someone like Cutty to put his thugs and every mercenary in a thirty mile radius on to you. We both know this. What was it?"

"Hummm... I might have accidentally diverted some of his shipments or embezzled some of his funds. Not much..." Reeden's voice was small, but no matter that and what words he used, the other was sure to pick up on the real dimension his use of 'some' involved. Not that he was trying to hide anything from the Sergeant. The man was his best friend and he knew that he was probably the only one who could help him out of this tight spot. He just did not like to admit he had been caught.

"What happened to those «funds» you embezzled? Do you still have them? Perhaps if you return what you took..." Gaddes suggested.

"Ah... nope. No can do. I've already spent it", Reeden hesitated.

"You spent it?" Incredulous.

"Ya. Remember how I was never very lucky at cards?..."

"I don't believe it. You gambled everything? And lost?"

"Well, there's not much else to do at town or here, so... yup", he concluded sheepishly. "What do you think I should do, Sarge?"

"I'll try to have a word with Cutty sometime today. In the meanwhile, don't leave the Fort. The last thing we need is for anything to happen to you and sir Allen finding out about this and getting involved. The man would probably expel you from the army or something."

"Don't worry, Sarge, I won't." At least, Gaddes thought to himself, if there was something he knew about the man and could definitely rely on, was that Reeden knew when to take warnings to heart. If only he would learn to stay out of trouble...

"And get the parts you stole from his guymelef back in place!"


	5. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4: Curtiwald Zänninger **

Allen sat quietly in his new office, pouring over more reports about the activity in and around the Fort. It seemed it was the only thing he could do, and had been doing for at least two days in a row now. He calmly sipped his tea, feeling the hot liquid fill his stomach and spread its warmth all over his body. He let him self relax, while in his mind, his thoughts were in raging battle. Ultimately, the knight had to admit defeat. To some extent.

He had set out to punish a soldier who had a painstakingly clear disrespect for the rules of the Asturian army, and he did not like what the outcome had been. He had wanted to state a punish for the man there and then, but somehow the Sergeant had heard about the commotion and stepped in, completely undermining his authority as commander.

Allen equated that Gaddes had done what he did so that the knight did not become even more unpopular among the men, or even because he felt that Allen, being so new at the Fort, was not yet familiar enough with the way these men functioned. The first, he understood and could actually be a bit grateful for the concern, but the second was a different matter altogether.

If Gaddes expected him to shut his eyes to what went on among the soldiers, he was very mistaken, and no amount of time 'fraternizing' would change that. Allen was a young man, but he already had plenty of experience on his shoulders. He had his way of doing things, and had proven it to be effective on other occasions where it had been necessary. Now that he had taken over command of the Fort, they had better realise that Gaddes' word was no longer the law. His was. And with that significant change, they could also expect that the way the Fort was run would have some profound alterations.

For starters, he was beginning to see that the outpost was not as isolated as it had seemed from the air. There was a small town named Castelo two hours north on a horse ride. It was a small community that had settled there after the construction of the fort was terminated. It economically bloomed slowly but steadily under the shadow and protecting eye of the outpost. He could also see two other things, not quite as mind soothing. One, the men under him had the privilege of having much more weekly days off than normal and chose to spend them in this town. Two, the inhabitants of Castelo apparently were not as law-abiding as those of Palas, hence the development of the small oasis in the middle of nowhere.

Feeling that the details were starting to be too many for his mind to be able to keep up with unaided, the knight pulled out a sheet of paper and pen from a drawer. As he read through all the reports in front of him, he slowly began elaborating a list of all the different things he needed to further investigate, change, rearrange, and keep an eye out.

_- Rearrange soldiers' days off.  
- Check order for new ballistas from Palas: where is the equipment?  
- Significant discrepancy in weight measurements to the cargo of the vessel "Emperatrice": Asturian measure 35W, Fanelian measure 23W.  
- Other vessels with similar measuring errors over the past month: "Thule", "Anvers", "Le d'Urville".  
- Check request for money for construction materials to repair damage on the palisade: what damage?  
- ..._

Oh yes, between making friends and disentangling this mess of reports, he would have plenty of work to keep him occupied for at least the following two weeks or three. And he was not so sure whether he wanted to keep trusting - or allowing - his second in command to do things the way they had been done up to this point. It would possibly create a conflict between himself and the only person who had seemed interested in being his ally so far, but his morals and sense of duty did not permit him to allow this decay in military discipline to continue.

_**--------------------------------------------------**_

Deep down, Reeden knew very well how much he depended on his Sarge to watch his back. That was why he held the man in the utmost respect and reserved him his ultimate loyalty, even though he did not agree with his decisions most of the time. He never complained about how much work was assigned to him, although that had more to do with it the fact that it was never anything other than a bland load.

But sometimes he could not help questioning himself whether or not that respect and loyalty were misplaced. For instance, was it really necessary to reinstall all the hidropumps that he had so skilfully dismantled the previous night without anyone growing the wiser on the knight's guymelef? He knew the sergeant liked to hold himself in a state of mild respectability - he was after all the bridge that linked the soldiers of Castelo and their daily reality to that of the army of Palas - but he had no need or obligation to lick the new commander's boots.

Reeden often bragged of how he was in the Sergeant's good graces, but there was one thing about it that he took uncharacteristically seriously - or as seriously as his ruffian personality permitted -, and that was how much the two of them talked on occasional nights.

Everyone at Fort Castelo was there for a reason, typically a not very good reason. Being assigned to this outpost was almost a running joke among the Asturian infantry. Some, like Reeden, had a tendency to take a situation and turn it to their advantage, be it strictly legally or not; others had similar clashes with the pristine and obedient image that was required of them at all times. Minor or not, those clashes had bought them a one way ticket to the Fanelian frontier. No one complained about the treatment, since they had much more freedom as they were.

But with Gaddes, it was an entirely different case. Reeden was not sure about the details of what had landed him there - the man claimed he did not like to dwell on what had been and preferred to think on what was to come instead - but there was something intrinsic about Gaddes that separated him from the average scum. He had a good head on his shoulders and a good sense of responsibility. Everyone knew they could count on Gaddes, somehow.

The special particularity, though, was that 'everyone' truly meant everyone. He would side with his friends and enemies alike, so long as he deemed reason was on their side. The sergeant had an acute sense of justice that many found uncanny, but that all men admitted was what had held the Fort's populace together. What Gaddes said was law and, in the eyes of everyone, there was no one who could better take the place of leadership. Which lead to the question: why in the seven hells did a rich city-boy uptight knight have to come and take away from them such a good man?

Even as Reeden hung suspended by security straps from the guymelef's artificial elbow, Gaddes was out, making his way to the city to talk to Cutty and solve problems that had nothing to do with him. He had also taken great lengths to insure that the rich city-boy uptight knight did not suspect a thing about what was going on behind his back, just so that Reeden would not have a rotten start with the new commander.

It was gestures like these that had earned Gaddes the position that he now occupied in the hearts of the men in this Fort. All knew that he could be trusted no matter what, and he gave them slack enough. In return he had harvested trust, devotion and the protection of all. That was the main reason why that Allen Schezar was receiving such a cold treatment, and would always receive it. Everyone resented him for replacing their Sergeant and taking the place that rightfully belonged to Gaddes.

All that and still, Gaddes seemed to back up the knight and tried to support him and accommodate him as much as possible, while at the same time keeping his men out of trouble. Reeden had to admit that he would not have done the same thing, and he knew for certain that neither him nor anyone else at the Fort would have had the same understanding attitude towards the newcomer.

Screwing the last of the bolts in place, he finally shut the last of the outside panels and declared his punishment complete. Then, just as he was rubbing the oil out of his hands and face, it happened.

The scrape of metal against metal echoed throughout the hangar as the doors were pushed open from the outside. Reeden ran a mental check trying to figure out what ship was coming in and why he had forgotten to keep the doors open for it. He could not place it, and that in itself was unusual, since he was the person in charge of receiving ships and was always on top of their comings and goings. Could this be an emergency, or a last minute call that had come in after he started his shift? Both were unlikely, so the soldier made his way to the small vessel that was entering.

It landed, its men exited, swords were drawn and Reeden knew at once that he was in deep trouble.

"Sonje..."

_**--------------------------------------------------**_

Gaddes had rushed through his affairs that day, leaving even a good portion of them for someone else to do in his stead. He had wanted to be done with his duties for the day shortly after lunch, so that he had enough time to ride all the way to the city of Castelo, find Cutty and settle his troubles with Reeden, and be back before it was time for dinner, so that knight Allen Schezar did not notice his prolonged absence and suspect that anything was amiss.

It was what one would call a simple plan. He was well familiar with the ride to and from the two Castelo's, having made it many times before, and he knew that whatever duties he had left behind would be covered properly. As for Curtiwald Zänninger, or Cutty as he was most known among his circle, he was an easy man to find. The problem was not so much the where or the when; it was the how, the why and whether or not your business was important enough to risk meeting him.

Gaddes considered himself an honest and loyal friend, and although Reeden sometimes did things that left him wondering whether or not to rethink his opinion on the man, he was still a friend. Therefore, the Sergeant's sense of responsibility left him in a most awkward position.

On the one hand, he could not betray his men, or rather, his companions at Fort Castelo, since he was no longer their leader. He had earned their respect, not an easy feat, and thus he respected them in turn. Not helping one of them in a situation such as this would be a fault, in his opinion. On the other hand, he had promised himself that he would do his best to ease the relations between the newly appointed knight and basically everyone else. There had been much talking among the soldiers about how the knight would only ruin the strange stability that Gaddes had managed, and although the Sergeant had no personal ill wish against Allen, he was sure he was one of the very few. He had wanted to have a nice thorough talk with the new commander today, but then Reeden had gotten in the way and that had had to be postponed. So now, he found himself with the task of smoothing out any conflicts before he had the chance to help the knight gain the respect of the soldiers.

So, awkward or not, it was a position that he had been forced to take and he planned to cut cleanly through it until he found himself safely on the other side. He straightened his shoulders, dismounted, took a breath of fresh air and steeled himself for what he knew was coming, before plunging deep into Cutty's favourite bar.

The changes in the environment were immediate and remarkably noticeable. The air was heavy with the respiration of too many on too short space. It smelled of spices, alcohol and perspiration, and shuddered to the rhythm of a fragile band playing on a far corner and the buzzing of conversation. The sun was only starting his descent outside, but inside the establishment it was dark, the lights dimmed and focused on certain points only.

A counter and high stools took up most of the wall to the right and the rest of the space was occupied by individual tables, some plain, others with couched sofas for the patrons to relax. A quick look around told Gaddes that Cutty was in one of the latter.

Remembering to keep his shoulders steeled, but not so much that he would be stiff, Gaddes slowly made his way to the entourage clustered around the group of tables. Cutty was the only one he recognised although he had never spoken to him in person, but he could guess that the others were either associates or guards. He was stopped long before he got near by a bulky presence.

"Where do you think you're going?"

"I just wanted to have a word with Cutty about a common friend of ours, that is all", he said, placating the obvious hostility by showing his hands. The neck-less individual motioned to someone who was closer to his boss, and after a brief exchange, the man in question got up to join Gaddes.

Curtiwald Zänninger was not a warrior, nor could he ever pass as one, but he had an imposing figure nonetheless, Gaddes had to admit. Years of accumulated profits had made him swell, in arrogance and confidence but also in size. His elegant outfit, filled to the brim with designs from places which Gaddes could only dream of, made little to cover up the not so elegant curve of his contented stomach, that made his deep voice resonate.

"You wanted to see me?" He asked languidly.


	6. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5: Aggressive negotiations**

Gaddes was sure he could say without anyone disagreeing that he was a man of courage. Relatively young he may be, but he had seen more than most, and then dealt with it too on top of that. Thieves never got their way with him, and deadly assassins frightened him about as much as a kitty with particularly sharp nails. So, no, he was a hard man to scare.

What never failed to get him were nerves. The man carried his nervous system in his puffy sleeves, so it was a given that it would inevitably pop up if one were to shake him up a bit. Right now, he was thinking along the lines that the situation was the very definition of "shake him up a bit", as he sat down in between two unidentified, but very put out members of Curtiwald Zänninger's entourage.

After mentioning Reeden, Gaddes had been "cordially invited" to sit at the table with the man. Meaning, sitting there was the only way the other would listen. Now, that would not have been much of a problem, except that the two men on either side of him were pushing against him, trying to squeeze him off of existence, and every single person on the table was looking at him with a "talk or I'll kill you because I'm bored" expression.

Oh yes - he told himself while attempting to find the friendliest face, the least infuriated one, to focus on. Turned out it was Zänninger himself. - He was definitely nervous.

"I'm here because of a friend of mine, Mr Zänninger-"

"Please, we are among friends. Call me Cutty", the man injected. His tone was silky, but the impression that crept through it and the half-lidded gaze was one of hateful disdain.

"... Cutty, then. You put up a bounty for this friend of mine, Cutty, a very large sum of money, in fact. I'm talking about Reeden, as you already know." Scoffs and glances were immediately exchanged throughout his small audience, and Gaddes suddenly knew these people were about to dismiss him. "I was wondering if there was some alternative solution we might... negotiate?"

That regained everyone's interest, for they suddenly quieted down and looked at Cutty with looks so meaningful, Gaddes didn't even try to guess what might be behind them. Cutty would no doubt enlighten him in a few moments, in any case.

The man leaned forward and rested his elbows on the table top. Then without a break in the movement, leaned further still to rest his chin on top of his hands. All he said was:

"Oh?"

**o**

"Reeden, my friend! What a pleasant surprise!" The lanky man leading the group of armed men greeted with a smile. The two knew each other, but were far from friends, and the proximity of this encounter with the fact that Cutty wanted him, was enough to let Reeden know there was nothing of "surprise" involved here.

"Sonje..." Reeden spat the name back.

Sonje was a tall man that looked like he had never been paid enough to eat properly. He worked for Cutty, so it was most likely true. No one knew for sure where he came from, or if his name was even "Sonje", but his features were unmistakably that of a foreigner. Thin white-blond hair and small icy eyes cut into skin that was never meant to be exposed to the sun for too long were not the regular traits of an Asturian.

Reeden knew the man well enough from his dealings with Cutty, since Sonje was one of his favourite employees. He delivered messages from time to time, but his real job was much more bloody than that. That was why Reeden kept an eye on the swords so openly displayed. For now, they were only talking, which meant maybe, just maybe, Sonje was not there for him.

The smiling blond was standing just in front of Reeden, making full use of his height against that of the short man. "So. How have you been doing?"

Reeden almost rolled his eyes. This was why he hated this man. He was basically Cutty's lapdog, and still he acted like a Duke. Hell, he had no trouble imagining Sonje cutting someone's arm off and then politely asking if they knew the time. "Cut the crap, Sonje, why are ya really here?"

"Now, there is no need to speak like that", he said with an exaggerated aristocratic accent and cringe. "But you are correct, if I am to be perfectly honest, I must admit that there is little of coincidence in my being here. My friend."

Reeden almost blurted out "no shit", but kept it in. He'd go cross eyed if he had to hear another patronising lesson on manners from someone who had no moral.

"As it is, it has come to my knowledge that you have upset our dear friend, Curtiwald."

"Oh shit", this time he couldn't keep it in. That was the confirmation he did not want to hear. "You're here to kill me, aren't ya?"

Sonje's smile widened dangerously.

**o**

"I am a business man, Mr Gaddes. What Reeden has done to me... what he did to my commercial dealings has caused great injury to me and my reputation. Surely you understand this?" Cutty calmly said, openly fixing his gaze on Gaddes and analysing the man's discomfort.

"Of course, what Reeden did was wrong, but-"

"In that case," he interrupted, "you must also see that I am left with no other choice but to take action. If I let this occurrence slide, who is to assure that others won't do as your friend has done, Mr Gaddes?"

"Certainly, but I'm sure we can-"

"And your friend Reeden has frustrated me greatly with his foolish 'antics'." Would this man let Gaddes please finish a sentence? He was patient by nature but did not appreciate being brushed aside like that either. "Did he seriously think I would not notice what he was up to? No, my friend. Nobody cheats on Cutty and lives to tell the tale. There is nothing to negotiate here."

**o**

"Hey, Reeden!... whoa!" Katz said upon entering the hangar and being confronted with the situation there. Pyle, Ort, Kio and him had just gone to see if Reeden had finished his work and if he was interested in a game of cards. Instead, they were met with a group of unknown individuals who had their swords drawn and were apparently disturbing Reeden.

"What is going on here?" Pyle said, moving from behind Katz and stepping up front. Unlike Reeden and Katz, who were both stringy, Pyle was a big man and wore steel armour over his regular uniform. When necessary, he usually made good use of his intimidating figure, as was the case now.

As soon as Reeden saw the group of fellow soldiers, he hastily retreated next to them, putting some very nerve-calming distance between himself and Sonje. The white-haired was not too pleased with the disruption, but Reeden would have liked it even better if he had looked a bit more ruffled about now. Could he possibly think he could still kill Reeden in the presence of the newcomers?

"Heh, Sonje, why don't we leave this for another time. My friends and I have stuff to do right now."

Sonje had lost his smirk, but his eyes were still narrowed dangerously. He looked at his men, then turned back to the group of Asturians. He still had a numerical advantage of about three-to-one. "We're taking them ALL to Cutty. Tie them up and get them on the ship", he disinterestedly ordered.

A chorus of acknowledgements was his response, as the men, free to do as their more violent instincts dictated, started towards the group of five. Before anyone could have done anything to defend themselves, Katz and Ort were lying unconscious on the ground, victim of two simultaneous blows to the head.

Pyle had fared better, having his armour to protect himself, and Reeden was just too small and agile to be easily caught. Kio on the other hand, who was also a big fellow, didn't even have to move, as all it took was a good punch to knock his attacker out of commission. Still, their numbers had been reduced to three, while Sonje's men remained.

It didn't take them long to subdue the three Asturians, but in the end they had plenty of their own numbers to drag back to the ship. As Reeden was unceremoniously dumped inside the cargo hold, he could hear Sonje softly laughing and giving the orders to take them to Cutty.

**o**

"However... we will be in touch in the near future, Mr Gaddes. I can assure you of that", Curtiwald Zänninger said by way of dismissal.


	7. Chapter 6

**A/N: This chapter is proof that reviewing does make a difference. I hadn't realised how long it's been since I last updated! So I sat myself down and pulled up this story from the dregs of my computer and told myself that another day would not pass without an update. What happens from now on, though... well, let's just say I'm not dead, and neither is this fic. I'm sorry - I'm low on free time right now - but thank you for reading! And on a side note, I went out on a branch and said that Gaddes' eyes are green. I honestly don't remember: are they? **

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**Chapter 6: A change of plans **

By the time night fell, Allen was feeling so tired, that he wasn't even upset by the fact that no one was saluting their superior officer as he made his way to his seat at the dinner table. When he got there, he did not even pause to consider that he was in plain sight of everyone, before he dropped down onto his chair and leaned his head against his hands.

He had spent the entire day after leaving the hangar going over a stack of paperwork that would not end. He knew it was work that had to be done, but it certainly was not his forte. He had tried to weasel his way out of it - and of the remorses he knew he would later feel if he had just put off the work for another day - by sending whoever happened to pass outside the open door to his office in search of Gaddes, every now and then, but no one had been able to find the man.

Thus it was that even his own conscience had turned against him and Allen decided that he would stop wondering how things could possibly get worse for him. He rubbed his stinging eyes and swore to himself that never again would he repeat that mistake.

Whether the men hated him or not and no matter what Gaddes wanted to protect him from, the next day he was going to take on a much more practical approach to solve the problems of Fort Castelo - and he already had the little to-do list he had compiled earlier to get him started in that enterprise.

His stomach growled and his nose immediately steered his hand toward the dish on his left. It was an indistinguishable brownish mush of chopped meat and what could possibly be vegetables, but it was also the one that looked the most appetising out of the available selection.

He looked around himself and saw that everyone else at his table was already happily munching away their chosen gruels and that at least a couple of drink jars had already been emptied. The men below were no different: he could spot several groups singing or drinking and, unless his stinging eyes betrayed him, gambling as they ate. All in all, it wasn't any different than what he had encountered on the night of his introduction.

His eyes narrowed as he added yet another habit he would have to break these men off to his to-do list. There would be no mobs of drunkards under his command: what if there was an emergency while they were all inebriated? He would turn them into respectable soldiers yet.

Just then, the doors-or-are-they-gates of the great hall opened and in came the man that Allen had been itching to talk to all day. His second in command was calmly making his way over to the seat next to his, but the knight thought there was something strange about his behaviour. He was not talking to anyone, despite the fact that many threw him a comment or a question - or one of those bone-shattering pats on the back - along the way.

Allen would not have been worried had it been anyone else, but from what he had seen of the sergeant so far, it was uncharacteristic of him to ignore others like that, or to look so somber. The Knight Caeli wondered if the strange mood had anything to do with the note he had received in the hangar that morning.

"Something wrong?" he asked Gaddes after he had taken his seat.

Gaddes looked almost startled by the question and for a good while afterwards, he just stared at the knight's expectant face. Allen recognised the expression and it surprised him in return: he was being evaluated. His second in command was debating over what to tell him.

"If it's personal and you don't want to discuss it, that's fine", he said at once. He had just met the man after all, and his only obligation was to keep the Fort functioning, not his subordinate's lives. "You just looked troubled."

Still not talking, the sergeant's brows knitted together. Seeming to have come to a decision, he let out a long breath and gave the soldiers sitting close-by a measured glance. After that, he leaned toward the knight. Allen followed his lead.

"Yeah, something's happened that you should know about, sir Allen", he explained in a hushed voice so that no one else could hear.

"What?" the knight asked back. All signs of weariness were leaving him, and his mind was sharpening with alertness. Gaddes' tone was not promising.

"It's hard to explain, but do you remember Reeden, from this morning?" Allen nodded instantly – he would not forget the scoundrel that had cannibalised his beautiful guymelef that easily. "He got himself into some trouble with someone from town and now he and some of the other men have gone missing."

Allen sat back on his chair after hearing that. Somehow, the news did not surprise him. What did, however, was the fact that Gaddes looked genuinely upset about it. Reeden had yet to demonstrate behaviour suitable for a soldier of the Asturian Army, and if he and his fellow accomplices wanted to defect, Allen was sincerely inclined not to raise any objection.

Still, said the nagging voice of righteousness that would not let his personal aggravation cloud his reason, Reeden was one of his men and as commanding officer Allen was responsible for him. Damn his principles for making him care for the miscreant!

Allen looked around for the closest person who still looked sober. Focusing on a dark-haired man whose name he frankly could not recall, he quickly ordered him to prepare a tray with a meal for two and take it to his office.

Then he gestured toward Gaddes to accompany him and left the great hall, leaving a slightly baffled soldier in his wake.

**_---------------------_ **

"Tell me everything", Allen calmly ordered his second in command after he and Gaddes had situated themselves on each side of the desk at his office.

The sergeant pulled out a piece of paper from the breast pocket of his shirt that Allen instantly recognised as the one he had been delivered earlier at the hangar. So his suspicions had been right. As the man unfolded it and spread it on the table top, Allen's eyes widened in understanding.

"Oh."

The paper was an announcement, not unlike the ones one would find hanging on the window of any shop when a pet went missing, but one much more sinister. In it was the shadow graph of a face that the knight recognised as Reeden's and it simply read:

_WANTED  
__DEAD OR ALIVE _

_Contact Cutty _

"When you said Reeden and some other men had gone missing, I assumed they had just ran away..." the knight said, taken by surprise. He had been forced by Army regulations when he had made his earlier decision to listen to Gaddes and help Reeden, but now he was really concerned for the man - thief or not. Just what had he gotten himself into? "Who is this Cutty?"

"Cutty, whose real name is Curtiwald Zänninger, is a local crime lord. He runs some smuggling operations and... other things, if you get my meaning. Sometimes, Reeden would do him some favours for extra money, like overlooking some suspicious cargo or equipment whenever one of Cutty's ships stopped by for inspection."

The sergeant was bearing a pained look at having to admit to what his friends did in the Fort and how he knew all about it, and Allen suddenly realised that if Reeden had not disappeared, he would probably have never found out about these operations.

"And you let this happen?" he cried out in indignation. He had thought more of Gaddes.

"Sir Allen, you have to realise that we're very far away from anything. This isn't like Palas", the dark-haired man justified. "I knew Reeden did these things - in fact, I asked him to keep me informed of them."

"Keep you in-!" the knight sputtered, but Gaddes was not finished.

"Yes, keep me informed. So that I could keep him under control", he affirmed. "I never let him do anything that was too bad. If Cutty wanted him to close his eyes on an extra box of precious minerals, that was fine. But if he asked Reeden to smuggle weapons or slaves, or let his assassins pass unchecked through the border, I told him to stay out of it."

"And you honestly believe that Reeden listened to you?"

"Yes, he listened to what I told him", Gaddes vouched with conviction. "Because if he did like I asked him to on those occasions, he knew that I wouldn't try to stop him on the others."

"Fine. So you kept tabs on him", Schezar finally said, conceding that it was a moot point until Reeden was found and therefore not worth discussing. But he was nevertheless disturbed by what he had just learnt, and by the part Gaddes had played in it. "How did this happen, then?"

"Reeden got greedy."

"Reeden got greedy and...?" The knight was wondering if anything about these 'operations' could still shock him at this point.

"And he started cheating on Cutty. Cutty didn't like it, so he put out that notice", Gaddes said, pointing at the paper. "Then this afternoon, Reeden, Ort, Kio, Pyle and Katz went missing. I don't know what happened to them."

Allen took a deep breath, going over everything that he had been told. His second in command was looking at him anxiously, but the knight could see the strength behind his green eyes. He remembered that one of the first impressions he had gotten from the man when they had met was that he was loyal and steadfast, and here was proof.

Despite knowing the bad impression that the knight would be left with of both him and his fellow soldiers after he had explained the situation, Gaddes had come forth in hopes that Allen would be able to help Reeden in a way that he alone could not. He was standing by the men he probably called his friends, yet at the same time remained loyal to them and his new commanding officer by revealing the secrets of what they had been up to in the Fort.

And Allen had no delusions that if he had wanted to, Gaddes could have gone around his authority and sent some soldiers himself to look for the missing - he certainly had the men's loyalty for that. But instead, he had come to Allen, whom he had no way of knowing how he would react, and laid down his cards.

Allen had to admire his fibre.

"Very well, first things first: we have to find Reeden and make sure he is safe. I want you to gather up some men you trust - about five, no more - and have them take a look around in the woods, just in case Reeden did run for it. In the meanwhile, I'm going to Castelo to see if this Cutty can be reasoned with..."

"Begging your pardon, sir Allen", Gaddes cut in, "I already went to see him this afternoon." Allen did not look pleased by that little revelation, but the sergeant continued: "He said he wouldn't let this go, and that I'd be hearing from him again soon. I don't know what he meant by that, but I didn't like it."

"But if he was that confident, then he's probably aware of what happened to Reeden and the others."

Gaddes nodded his agreement.

"All right. Change of plans: forget about the search party. You and I are going to go 'hear from Cutty again'. First thing tomorrow."


	8. Chapter 7

**A/N: On a funny note, my spellchecker seems to think that the correct spelling for "guymelef" is "Telefunken". I just might have to use that on a chapter title, lol... Enjoy!  
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**Chapter 7: Not a stuffed flower**

When he had been a wee little lad who played with wooden toy swords, Gaddes had loved hearing stories from his mother about the incredibly strong and brave Knights Caeli who lived far away in the capital and protected the King and the people from Evil. Those stories had stood unchallenged as his favourites throughout childhood, and he supposed that somewhere in his subconscious mind, they had played a part when he had decided he wanted to join the Asturian Army.

Even as he grew up and began to understand that the high-flung tales of the deeds of these near super-human men were just that - exaggerated stories, his admiration remained. Instead, he started to appreciate other things about the knights, like their never-faltering honesty and prowess with a sword. They remained every bit the heroes that battled away evil-doers and defended the weak in his dreams, and as he matured, the added humanity only deepened their appeal. He still never missed the chance to play in a game of 'knights and scoundrels' with the other kids in his village whenever he could, and he always played the part of knight.

When he was finally old enough that his parents let him leave for the city, he did not hesitate. He packed his bags and left with the Asturian Army recruiting caravan that visited once a year, headed towards Palas. Throughout the following years of training, his childhood dreams were finally realised, and he came to see several of the legendary knights in person on many an occasion – learnt from them at the Academy, even!

But, as was the case with all things too good to be true, the perfect image of the men his mind had cherished for so long had not come out unscathed from those encounters.

They were cunning warriors, yes, and some of the things they could do with a guymelef were still beyond Gaddes' comprehension. But their skills had made most of them arrogant and aloof. They had grown too comfortable in their positions and acted more like puffy aristocrats than men willing to sacrifice themselves to keep the common people of Asturia safe. While their understanding of strategy never failed to humble Gaddes and his simple straightforward thinking, it felt to him like they never used that knowledge where it could make an actual difference.

Bottom line: for all their awing skills, it turned out that the heroes of his childhood were a bunch of arrogant ponces. Luckily for him, Gaddes had grown into a practical enough man by the time he realised this, to not let that disappointment affect him much. But he still held on somewhat childishly to the notions he had of what the knights from the stories his old mother told him were supposed to be like.

On this day, standing on the edge of the little town called Castelo next to Allen Schezar, another ground-shattering event in the long history of those notions was currently unfolding, and Gaddes was not sure whether it would resolve itself into a change on his impressions for better or for worse.

The knight was staring off into the distance with a little smirk, arms crossed and eyes narrowed in concentration as he considered his next move. He had a little splatter of mud on one of his cheeks, but that did nothing to lessen the intensity of the startling expression on his face.

He looked positively devilish in his determination, and that was not something the sergeant liked seeing on the face of a commander. He had heard too many stories from fellow soldiers about fanatical leaders and what they were capable of doing.

Sparing a look at the small group of men and the large blue kneeling guymelef assembled behind the two of them, Gaddes wondered if this was the case and whether or not he should be wary of whatever it was the man intended to do.

He and Allen had just met up with their reinforcements, after having a charming encounter with Cutty at the bar he liked to frequent, earlier that morning. Gaddes now thought back with apprehension on the things the knight had said there, and that neither he nor Cutty had taken seriously...

_**---------------------**_

_The place was not as empty as one would expect in the early hour, but as Gaddes took a closer look at the patrons, he noticed that most of them were actually sleeping off their late night partying rather than monetarily contributing for the flourishing of business._

_The group closest to the door caught Gaddes' attention, and he suddenly found himself hoping that Allen had a bad visual memory: they were men from the Fort. He tried to gesture to them surrepticiously to leave, but no one was looking his way. He sighed and followed the knight, figuring that if he hadn't said anything, it was because he hadn't realised who those people were and Gaddes wasn't about to give them away._

_They found Zänninger sitting on the same table where Gaddes had found him before, like he had been glued to the plush seat. His entourage had left, for the most part, but the thin hair on the back of the sergeant's neck stood on end as he recognised the lean, blond man who had taken their place. He made a grab for Allen's arm to stop his advance, but the knight had already too much of an advance on him._

_Schezar strode confidently towards Cutty, without even waiting for his second's confirmation that that was, indeed, the renowned crime-lord who ran Castelo. Gaddes' mind needlessly drew a comparison between the unfurling scene and that of a sacrificial lamb walking into a hungry wolf's den. He hurriedly caught up with his commander - the man would need the reinforcement soon enough._

_They had yet to reach the table, when the blond who had rattled Gaddes' nerves intercepted them. He took a stand in a manner that just blocked their view of the crime-lord._

"_May I be of assistance, gentlemen?"_

"_Are you Mr Zänninger?" Allen asked, blatantly inspecting the smirking white-clad man and the sword at his belt in a manner that shouted that he was not intimidated. Behind him, Gaddes was praying to his deities, wishing that the young knight would tone down his determination - he was talking to a very dangerous, very deadly man._

_The blond laughed out loud at the stranger's naïveté and spoke in dulcet, patronising tones: "No, that would be my employer, who is sitting behind me and does not appreciate being disturbed while he is having his breakfast. I am Sonje."_

_Gaddes took the opportunity to step in and lean close to Allen's ear, whispering: "Sir Allen, maybe we should come back later..."_

"_Nonsense", the knight replied levelly, and neither Sonje nor Gaddes were sure of which of the two the reply was meant for. "Mr Zänninger will just have to make an exception to see me."_

_Sonje raised a wondering eyebrow and opened his mouth to give another negative reply, but the voice that was heard then was not his._

"_Let them pass", the burly man at the table said, as he wiped his mouth his a napkin that had seen better days and pushed his plate away from him. "That there is the uniform of a Knight Caeli, Sonje. I can take the time to receive such an esteemed guest. I am Curtiwald Zänninger, but please - call me Cutty."_

_Sonje immediately made a ninety degree turn and allowed his head to incline deferentially to let the knight pass. Gaddes followed, but did not miss the deep interest in the gaze the tall, thin man was directing at Allen's back._

"_Mr Zänninger", he stated with impeccable accent, "thank you for receiving me. I am sir Allen Schezar, the new commanding officer of Fort Castelo."_

_Cutty gave a brief chortle and spared Gaddes a mocking glance. "Lost your job, sergeant?"_

_Allen did not give his second-in-command the opportunity to respond. He did it for him and in a way that left the dark-haired man stunned._

"_On the contrary, I have simply been reassigned here from Palas. Sergeant Gaddes has performed his duties admirably up until now and I am even recommending him for promotion." Evidently pleased that he had retaken the upper hand, after seeing the uncertain look that crossed Cutty's face, Allen continued: "But that is not why I am here. I have come to talk to you about a certain bounty you placed on one of my men. Reeden?"_

"_What of him? You should be thanking me that I have relieved you of that little rat."_

"_So, you _have_ taken him."_

_From his position standing rigidly on Cutty's side, Sonje's placid eyes shifted to his employer for a fleeting moment. The crime-lord did not acknowledge the move or said anything, but Allen had just been given all the confirmation he needed._

"_I demand that you release him and the other men you are holding prisoner."_

_Cutty chortled again. "Or what?"_

"_Or I will find myself forced to take action against you."_

_This time, even Sonje laughed alongside his boss. Gaddes sighed. Brash and noble statements like that were really thrilling when they were spoken by the heroes in a story, because you always knew that oceans would burn before anything stopped them. But Allen - in all his puffy-sleeved, late adolescent glory - just wasn't convincing enough. The young knight seemed to arrive to the same conclusion at the same time._

"_We will be seeing each other again in the future. Perhaps sooner than you might think", he said, before exiting the place with Gaddes close behind him._

_**---------------------**_

Gaddes sighed, and hoped that Allen was not drawing his attitude from the same fantastic stories about the Knights Caeli that he had heard in his youth. Standing up to Cutty was all well and good, but actually_moving_ against him... Sonje and his goons would cut them all down before they had a chance to do anything to their boss.

Or before he got his promotion, Gaddes recalled. That little tidbit had really perked his ears.

"Were you serious about that promotion thing you told Cutty?" he asked his commander, who still looked as firm and as convict as a rock.

"Of course, sergeant. I will send out the request to Palas as soon as I get to know you better and think you have earned it."

"But you told Cutty-"

"I told Cutty", Allen interjected with a slight smile, "that I was recommending you for promotion. I never said when."

Gaddes buried his slight disappointment under a layer of amusement. He hadn't really been expecting it to be true, but suddenly, he felt like a junior trainee back at the Academy in Palas all over again, during one of those times when the instructors slipped him a trick question which he always fell for. He studied Allen's profile again.

It was hard to believe that he could be a Knight Caeli, when Gaddes could not even imagine him wielding a sword. Not only was Allen younger than him, but it was also startlingly easy to conjure up an image of the blond tripping over his skirt if he tried. But he seemed to have the brains for the position so far, not to mention the courage.

Facing up to Cutty and Sonje with the level of coolness he had demonstrated was not an easy thing to do; Gaddes could attest to that. And in the process, he had even found the time to stick up in defence of his second-in-command. Gaddes did not regret telling him about Reeden; he was sure that he had done the right thing now.

His friends might be upset that their sergeant had ratted on them to the "prissy new commander" when they got back, but whatever happened they stood a better chance of rescue if the Knight Caeli was involved. Gaddes could have acted by himself if he wanted, but splitting his attention between keeping the knight out of the loop and the search parties going, would only diminish their chances of success. And when the time came to face the music for their actions afterwards, he had a feeling that Schezar would be fair.

Now, if only the man would get that fiendish look off his face! It was making him nervous, and Gaddes did not like to be nervous. He was not sure if he would be able to stop the knight if he decided he wanted to do something stupid.

Suddenly, Gaddes heard something moving in the midst of the trees dead ahead. His hand immediately strayed to the sword hanging by his belt, already envisioning a huge land-dragon on its way to attack them. It was a good thing Schezar had brought his guymelef because they would need it if that were the case, but a quick glance at his commander found him unrattled, like he had not heard a thing.

Was the man crazy not to recognise the potential danger they were in, or plain deaf? He reached out to shake his shoulder, but too late - whatever was coming their way had reached them.

And it was Teo.

Gaddes frowned heavily. He was puzzled. He remembered seeing Teo at Cutty's bar, but how did he know they were there? Could Schezar have planned this? He wanted desperately to ask what was going on, accustomed to being in charge and therefore in control of everything his men did, but decided to bid his time and wait to see if Allen would enlighten him on his own.

"Don't know what you expect to get from this, but the men are doing what you told them to as we speak, sir Allen", Teo reported.

The knight's smile widened, reminding Gaddes of a content predator who had set his trap and needed only pull the string to spring it. Gaddes shuddered and decided that he had to know what was going on _now_.

"Sir Allen? What are those men doing? And what are _we_ doing?"

"Sergeant, you told me last evening that if Reeden and the rest really were with Cutty, you had a good idea of where he might be keeping them. Well, now we know that Cutty has them: it's time you and I go get our men."

Gaddes' heart stopped beating. All he knew was that he had a sudden urge to shout in the foolish knight's ears that he was not invincible and that he could not expect to just waltz into Cutty's place and ask around for Reeden and the others to be released. It was not that simple.

"Are you mad?" he said instead.

"Not at all. I just ordered a group of our men to go into the bar where we met Zänninger and do something that they're quite good at. I told them to create enough confusion to keep Cutty and his henchman there for some time. While they are held there, you and I will slip in and out of Zänninger's hideout with Reeden, Katz, Pyle, Ort and Kio."

"But there will be guards!"

Allen reprimanded him with a look for the outburst, before explaining. "Cutty is too confident in his position. There won't be many guards. He doesn't see the need for them when, from his perspective, no one around would dare go against him. And besides, you, me and a few of these men will be more than enough to take care of them."

"Are you sure about that? It's quite a decisive bit of your plan to leave up to a guess", Gaddes said dubiously. "And what about Cutty? Do you have any idea of what he will do if he catches us?"

"The Asturian Army will not cower before a petty crime lord." The look Gaddes threw him let Allen know that he thought Cutty was anything but 'petty'. "It is our job to save our own and stop him, a job that has been postponed long enough."

Gaddes surrendered, feeling a pang of guilt at his commander's final argument. Knowing he had done what he could to deter the man, he let go of his doubts and steeled his nerves. All he could do now was follow Allen Schezar and try his hardest to ensure that both of them got out of this with all limbs in the right place.


	9. Chapter 8

**A/N: Thank you everyone for your comments - they are all muchly loved, as are you! I'd like to take this opportunity to ask if anyone would be interested in beta-ing this fic? The biggest challenge would be helping me revise the first few chapters, but after that you'd be getting to read new chapters before everyone else! Just contact me if you're interested. ****Now... go read and enjoy the new stuff!**

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**Chapter 8: The best of plans **

_Zänninger & Associates Exportations_: that was what was written on the mouldy plaque hanging at the front of the building. Somehow, Allen wasn't surprised that Cutty would name his business after himself and then plaster it so blatantly at the front of his so-called offices.

He and Gaddes were walking past it, trying to look casual while surveying the street where the three-story house that was Cutty's headquarters was located. There weren't any guards outside, but Allen counted a number of armed men just past the threshold as he sneaked a glance inside.

It didn't worry him. He wasn't about to fight his way in through the front door anyway.

Gaddes had told him that this part of town was the most recent, and that it had been built all at the same time because the population had grown so much so fast that it had become difficult to sustain. The soldiers at the fort had apparently received plenty of requests at the time to settle conflicts that had broken out due to the shortness of supplies, according to the Sergeant's narrative.

So, when these blocks of houses had been built, the architects had done what they could to help solve that problem as well. Each block of houses circled a common yard, that the townspeople could use to do some farming. But his sergeant had also said that when Cutty had moved in to settle on the nicer buildings, they'd received a lot of complaints at the Fort from his neighbours, who had been frightened by the constant comings and goings of his thugs. Many of those people had moved to live elsewhere, leaving most of the houses that shared Cutty's backyard empty.

That was going to be their way in, so when he was sure they were at a distance where they would not be heard, Allen gave Gaddes a nod towards a ground-level window of an abandoned house, and let his second-in-command break the glass with the hilt of his sword, before both of them slipped inside.

Most of the windows had been boarded up, so the illumination came mostly from the hole they had just made. Allen had no trouble squinting his way safely through the room. The adrenalin rushing through his veins was heightening his senses and clearing his head in a way that he had yet to feel since arriving at Fort Castelo. He felt in his element, finally in control, not having to worry about what his new subordinates thought or did.

This was the type of cavalier operation he liked to run: saving damsels from untold dangers, or going up against impossible odds for a comrade. He would never admit it - would never even consider it - but it was a trait that he had probably inherited from his reckless father.

Gaddes, however, not sharing in the perks of Schezar genes, was having a little more difficulty. Short after they had started moving towards the back, Allen heard a pained grunt from his sergeant and the sound of a chair crashing to the ground.

The knight turned back just in time to see Gaddes quickly straightening up after furiously rubbing one of his shins and acting like nothing had happened. Then he watched as the man reached out with his arms to feel his way, probably thinking that since Allen had not said anything, he was just as blind. When his second-in-command's arms bumped against his, he was amused to see the man take on a completely unconvincing air of innocence. It was difficult to conciliate the childish antics of the moment with the gruff image the sergeant had been presenting so far.

Soon, though, neither of them had to worry about navigating gloomy house divisions, as the light coming from the back entrance reached them. All amused thoughts instantly fled the knight's mind as he focused on the confrontation that would ensue.

Once again, he was not worried. He knew that no matter how many second-rate thugs were in wait of them, they could not possibly compete with the skill of a Knight Caeli, least of all when that Knight was him. It had taken a stand-off with Balgus, one of the three great swordsmen of Gaea, for him to be defeated, back when he had wandered the wild, and he had only grown better since. He figured the odds this time were very much in his favour.

He was not very fond of the roundabout tactic, but it was necessary not to raise any more alarms than necessary, and also because he had yet to see what his men were capable of in action.

They reached the door that led into the backyard, and Gaddes stood by - sword drawn and ready, waiting for his signal to bring down the door. Feeling a trickle of excitement coursing down his spine, Allen placed a hand over the amethyst ivory hilt of his sword and let a confident little smirk spread over his features.

"Let's do this," he said, to which Gaddes replied with a nod.

The wooden door put up little resistance as both men brought it down with a powerful joint kick.

**o**

Jacob opened his mouth in a brutal yawn. Morning shifts were always a sacrifice, but especially so after a late night partying. He was idly standing in the backyard patio by some door that was never used and trying to keep himself awake and warm by stomping his feet in place, when he saw the knob to the entrance to the house turn.

"Push harder," he spoke out loud to whoever was coming in to join him. "It gets stuck sometimes during the night."

The door finally gave way to a skinny youth with freckles on his face and a gap between his front teeth. Greeting him with a wave, the newcomer made his way over to stand next to Jacob.

"New around?" Jacob asked. He'd never seen the kid.

"Yeah, first day. Thought I'd do some work around here for something extra to spend," he said.

Jacob nodded wisely to that. He had done the odd job himself when he was growing up. Come to think of it, he wasn't sure if he had ever left the stage - but that was something to think about when he was feeling more awake.

Sadly, he would not be getting that chance any time soon, for without further warning, the door that was never used came down with a bang, hitting both him and the kid clean on the back of their heads. Both fell down like logs.

"Nice," Allen commented as he took note that their opposition had been taken care of for the moment. "It won't be so easy from now on, though. Feeling up to it?"

"Ready whenever you are, sir!" Gaddes gruffly exclaimed.

"Right. We'll split up to search for our men. You search the ground level and proceed to the second level if you don't find Reeden and the others there. I'll take the top floor and make my way down from there."

Gaddes nodded and watched reluctantly as his commander ran up the outer emergency stairs two at a time. He still wasn't too comfortable with the thought of leaving the young Knight to fend for himself. Schezar's sword had looked like it had never been used as anything other than ceremonial paraphernalia: the hilt did not have a speck of grime and the blade was without a nick. Very much unlike his own. But there was nothing he could do about it; he had his orders.

He pushed on the door he knew belonged to Cutty's place, but it didn't budge. He tried shoving it a bit more forcefully, but nothing still. It was because of the humidity in the air, he figured. It could get very high during the night this close to the marshes. So he threw himself at it, shoulder first.

The door finally opened, but Gaddes also found himself very much out of balance and face to face with three very surprised pairs of eyes. He struggled to gain his footing and place his sword between him and his enemies. The only thing that kept him from being skewered on the spot was the fact that the other men also had to take the time to draw their swords, and being that they were in a confined space, they kept getting in each other's way.

Both Gaddes and the men took about the same time to recover and moved in to engage each other at the middle of the corridor. Since there wasn't much space, Cutty's men had to come one at a time.

Gaddes locked blades with the first. The man was focusing all of his strength and weight on overpowering him, and therefore missed that Gaddes had shifted the grip on his sword to one hand only, so he could use the other to punch him.

Caught by surprise - and not really being that resilient to begin with - the thug was knocked out and fell on top of one of his companions who had been immediately behind him, trapping him under his dead weight.

The other one had been smarter and pushed himself against the wall to evade the falling bodies. He was quick to engage the sergeant and demonstrated to have some skill in dodging Gaddes' powerful blows. In the end though, the Sergeant rushed him and stuck out a foot to where he predicted the man would move to escape. The result was instantaneous: the man tripped and banged his head against the wall, slipping unconscious to the ground next to the other two.

Taking a pause to finally catch his breath, Gaddes rubbed his shoulder - that door was made of stronger stuff than it looked - and moved cautiously down the corridor.

There were several open doors along the way, and Gaddes tried to get a glimpse of their occupants. Seeing Reeden and the rest in none of the rooms, he merely did his best to sneak past them without being seen.

He had just gotten to a door that looked like it led to a basement, when a loud noise came from the floor above. He hoped Schezar hadn't gotten himself in trouble, but did not have much time to consider what to do about it as all the occupants of the rooms he had sneaked past suddenly came out into the hallway where he was and ran upstairs.

Gaddes immediately ducked down the stairs to hide from view, but did not have much luck as someone else had already been making their way up. He jumped up to grab the top of the door frame and kicked out at the man before jumping forward and downward himself.

Having been hit directly on the chin, the guard tumbled down the stairs to lay in a heap at the bottom. Gaddes also managed not to attract any unwanted attention, since the footsteps of everyone running on the wooden floors were loud enough to cover the grunts and noise of the guard tumbling down the stairs.

The basement had only one small window close to the ceiling and a pair of grimy oil lamps to illuminate it, but this time Gaddes had no trouble seeing the room where he had landed. Dividing the room in half was a wall of steel bars, behind which stood his five lost friends.

"Hey, sarge!" Reeden greeted him cheerily.

"Everyone all right?" Gaddes asked, searching the room for the keys to open the door to the makeshift cell.

"Aside from our bruised egos, just fine," Ort grumbled.

"I think the guy had the keys with him, sarge," Katz offered more helpingly.

Gaddes rolled the man he had taken down onto his back and sure enough, saw the keys clipped to a chain on his belt. He grabbed them and quickly inserted them in the lock, but the gearings were apparently rusty for the key was not moving.

"You're sure this is the key?" Gaddes grit through his teeth as he tried to make it turn.

"Yeah, definitely," Katz confirmed.

"Say, sarge. What's with all the racket upstairs?" Reeden asked.

"That would be Sir Allen."

The five that were locked shared a surprised look, before Reeden exclaimed: "That prissy Knight's here? Sarge, you didn' tell him about me, did ya?"

Gaddes' efforts finally paid off and the door was unlocked. He took a moment to look at the guard's lean frame and wondered how the man could have had the strength to lock it in the first place.

He pulled the door open and lifted his eyes to his men. He had expected them to be running out of there even before he had the chance to open the door wide, but instead they were frozen in place, looking at some point behind his back.

Suddenly feeling a chill at the back of his neck that told him someone was there, watching, he covertly let go of the keys and went for his sword. Brusquely, he turned, prepared to face whatever more guards had come, but instead came face to face with unnervingly icy eyes.

His hand was hit with such force, that he let go of his sword. Watching it skid across the floor to rest out of reach on the other side of the room, Gaddes could not even react as a sharp blade came to rest against the soft skin of his neck.

He dared to swallow, but regretted it as he felt the skin being nicked. Behind him, Reeden was moaning.

"Not again... Sonje!"


End file.
